Wednesday, June 01, 2016

Chinese Manufacturing Grew Weakly

China's factory activity was feeble last month, according to two surveys released Wednesday, indicating that official efforts to reverse a downturn in the world's second-biggest economy are struggling.

The country's massive manufacturing sector, which employs many millions of workers, eked out a tiny expansion in May, according to an official index by the Chinese Federation of Logistics & Purchasing, which came in at 50.1, level with April's reading.

The index is based on a survey of factory purchasing managers and uses a 100-point scale on which numbers above 50 indicate expansion and below 50 indicate contraction.